My Ideal Bookshelf edited by Thessaly La Force, with original art by Jane Mount is a cool book to browse for the new year. I love bookshelves and the possibilities. You can tell a lot about people by books they choose to keep and display. Consequently, My Ideal Bookshelf lends insight into other authors' and artists' collections.
In some cases, there's a sense of familiarity - aha moments of great reads (Diary of Anne Frank, tons of Jane Austen) In other cases, choices open up new worlds, authors and books that are strangers to me. The personal essays are thought provoking, amusing, and share the same love of words - a thirst for knowledge, and a yearning to reach beyond one's life and dreams.
Here are a few quotes from the back cover:
My goal as a writer is to do as much as possible at one time. Life itself is so cacophonous and complex...
I want to do justice to the complexity around us - Jennifer Egan
I think books find their way to you when you need them - Roseanne Cash
I think humor needs some kind of tragedy in order to be memorable. The funny things I remember have a twinge of sorrow to them - David Sedaris
Amongst many shelves, I have a favorite featuring David Sedaris, Mary Karr, Calvin Trillin, and other humor/memoirists. In regards to classics, I have all of my Dr.Seuss I read as a child, plus growing into Little Women - a fave.
Ray has a full shelf supporting Stephen King.
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